One attorney took a vacation for two weeks. When he returned, he found his office had been covered in tin foil by his assistant and some other wild turkeys in his office. Each pencil in the drawers matched what you see in this picture. Look at the floor...that made me laugh, they covered everything!
Ha ha. What a fun office. Even the managing partner was in on the gag. Now, think about your firm...could this ever happen? If your answer was "Not in a million years", then the culture of your firm is so old school that you should run screaming from the building. I love the spirit of fun in this prank even happening.
This particular office of this major national firm knows how to have some fun. When I saw this I realized what is missing in most law firms.
Have A Great Day.
thom
5 comments:
Ha, that is a good one. What firm allows lawyers to take vacations? Must be a Texas thing. Don't ever let that word leak out to New York, or all our associates will move to Austin.
Obviously what this firm does not have much work. I cannot imagine my co-workers having this sort of free time.
Ahhhh, my anonymous friend, you are wrong. This firm has a lot of work and the lawyers in this group bill a lot of hours. Top of the heap in their specialty.
They just do not take themselves too seriously at all times....which is a good thing. Trust me, if you are overly stuffy and self obsorbed, your clients know it and hate you because of it! Even if you are good at your job, real humans do not like lawyers who are "above everyone".
Remember....all things being equal, people do business with people they know and like.
thom
Thom, I'm enjoying your recent attention to lawyers, being one myself.
It is amazing, but not surprising how many lawyers are not just unhappy, but miserable. This misery transcends everything in the lawyers life. They wind up hating their clients, their co-workers, the judges they practice in front of (if they're trial lawyers), and generally forgetting the real reason they went to law school.
Chasing the all mighty dollar is not the goal of the lawyer, although it has become just that, chasing billable hours. I tell lawyers all the time that there are many ways to make money outside of law.
But back to your point. It is rare that we see lawyers having fun, and that is sad. My office goes out to eat occasionally, goes bowling, celebrates everyone's birthday, and the environment here is felt by the clients, who are all well represented.
There is nothing more true that your statement that "all things being equal, people do business with people they know and like."
I love what I do, and my clients know that. When I return from vacations, instead of being angry, they ask how was my trip.
Brian-
thanks for your comments. I speak on the topic of the power of business relationships and how to use your network of contacts as an asset at law firm retreats and seminars around the country....and I am always amazed at the resistance that many lawyers put up. They fight all aspects of legal marketing, biz dev, PR, branding, etc... Somehow those are the grouchy and unhappy lawyers.
I am glad your firm has fun, you should cherish that, because it seems to be the exception, not the rule.
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